BT Group PLC (LSE:BT.A) has released new data suggesting that more than 530 potential cyber attacks are logged every second.
The telecoms company said cyber security experts spot and intercept 46 million or more security breaches each day.
BT’s managing director for security, Tris Morgan, said the number of cyber threats in the UK “is rising at an alarming rate”.
Defence, internet technology, banking and insurance sectors are worst affected by cyber security breaches, according to data collected over the past year, even more so than retail companies, with hospitality and education sectors also affected.
Charities fell victim to 785,000 cyber attacks in the past year, it said, publishing the results for Cyber Security Awareness Month.
In a raft of new data, BT warned that connected devices are persistently scanned by hackers for vulnerabilities. with artificial intelligence now included among the artillery criminals use to pick holes in system defences.
Machine learning and automation are among the techniques used by hackers to intercept devices.
More than half of the businesses BT surveyed in May, or 61%, said they were finding it tough to keep up to date with cyber security measures.